The Start of Something New

Que Pasa?

This might seem odd, but the only way I could aptly title this blog was to borrow from one of the great musical classics of our time -- High School Musical. No shame.

Anyways, my reasoning is two-fold. Firstly, this week was a tough one to get through at times with all the major changes taking place, and secondly, your favourite website, yes, the one and only "Just Joshin'" will most likely be going through some significant changes. We at "Just Joshin" headquarters are just getting a little weary of the juvenile moniker and simplistic layout, so we're looking to revamp the image. After all, what's an internet persona without some 'cutting edge' personality?

But don't worry, I'll keep it all very easy to find and user-friendly... that is, if I can figure out what to do. (We're still at the drawing-board.)

So. How was this week, you ask? Well, like I said before, it was tough. I find myself to be partial to routines, so adjusting to an entirely new one can take some getting used to. I'm pretty excited about most of my classes, but the workload is going to be much greater than last semester. For every Mon-Wed-Fri, I have a Spanish textbook assignment, a Philosophy reading, and a Created and Called for Community reading/reflection. And then there are all of my magazine writing major projects (which will inevitably seem a little overwhelming) and my Computers assignments. But, I guess that's college for you. Last semester was a walk in the park -- a smooth, gentle introduction to college. We aren't messing around any longer.

My Philosophy class should be a good one. My professor is your typical absent-minded genius. He shows up to class in a T-shirt and sneakers everyday, and, like clockwork, walks into class huffing and puffing five minutes late. He's always in need of a shave (and maybe a little less coffee) giving the impression that he was up all night wrestling with the Problem of Evil. But all idiosyncrasies aside, he's actually a really good teacher with a brilliant mind and a great sense of humour. I'm looking forward to this one.

My other classes are nothing special in themselves. The Magazine Writing class is composed of English majors and upperclassmen, of which I am neither. It's a good thing I like a good challenge, because I've found one in this class. But I know I'm going to learn a lot. Although these blog entries are not exactly magazine feature articles, I'll try to incorporate what I learn. Let me know if you notice!

Spanish is a LOT better than last semester. My teacher is an American lady, which makes her a lot easier to understand. We have way more homework, but I guess that's a much better way to learn than cramming for tests. Pretty soon I'll be writing entire blog entries in Spanish for my Costa Rican grandparents! (haha.. not any day soon, though)

So those were my classes. But this week was busy because of much more than new academic obligations. I was asked last-minute to play acoustic guitar for Common Chapel on Tuesday morning -- something I'd never done before. So Monday night I had practice for chapel, then I went to bed, then I woke up, ate breakfast, and went to chapel, then I went to Mag. class, then from Mag to Computers (all with a guitar and a backpack on my shoulders), then from Comp to the lunch to the room where I did homework for 30 mins, then I went to swimming, to dinner, then finally back to the room to finish homework and, at long last, relax. Thursday was more of the same... except that I overslept and ran to chapel in a tizzy -- not a good way to start a very long day.

I hope you like run-on sentences as much as I do.

This will be the last time I talk about swimming for a while (except to mention results next week), because we have our big Conference meet this weekend. We leave very early Friday morning and then swim all day Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The funny thing about that, however, is that I'll only be swimming for a total of 24 seconds in a 3-day meet. Oh well. We don't arrive back on campus until late Sunday night with a few hours to sleep before classes on Monday. So I regretfully must inform you that there will not be a blog entry next weekend, although if I get a chance to type it up and then post it later in the week, I will. Stay tuned!

There's only two more things I wanted to mention, and I'll do so briefly. I met for lunch on Friday with an acquaintance of mine (he's a senior); we've chatted briefly around campus a few times, so he suggested that we meet up for lunch sometime. He's a really nice guy and when I first met him back in October he said he'd be happy to help me out as I got connected around campus, recalling how hard it was for him to adjust to college life when he was a freshman. Anyways, so we finally got to sit down and talk, and it was one of the best lunch conversations I've ever had. Seriously... I'm starting to think that my ideal career would be one where I just sit down and talk with people, preferably over food. Journalism? PR? That could work... Anyways, I learned a lot from this guy, and I can tell you more if you're interested (just email me) but let's just say that he really gave me a new perspective on certain theological doctrines.

The last thing is that Katrina and I celebrated our BIG two-year anniversary on Thursday. I sent her a little something, and she's bringing me a little something when she visits (in less than two weeks!!). I also recorded a couple songs and I felt like posting them for you to enjoy. There's no simple way to do this, so I've posted a link to all the songs I've recorded with people. The first two "Hallelujah" and "Open Eyes" I just recorded, but the others are all with lovely friends and family of mine. Feel free to check it out!

Well, I guess that's all! It's currently 50 degrees outside (er... 12 or 13?) and wonderfully sunny. People are outside in shorts! Ha.. but here I sit, loyal to those who are so loyal to me. Thanks again!

I'll be back with more soon!
jmb

(CLICK ON THE LINK TO THIS BLOG "THE START OF SOMETHING NEW" TO FIND THOSE SONGS)